A little love your way

Sweethearts

 Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

This morning I woke the kids up with heart shaped pancakes and they each had their own box of Valentine's chocolates at their place settings. I would've gone for some raspberry syrup, too but let's face it....they'd never eat it! Now I'm off to the store to get the ingredients to make my hubby his favorite, annual, Valentine's cheesecake!

Hope your day is full of love! 

Oooh Lolli Lollipops!

M and Maria in the lobby

Yesterday, M and I had our second arts event of the year to attend (our first was the Children's Theater The Borrowers last month.) We went uptown to the see the Charlotte Symphony in one performance of their family friendly concert series, Lollipops. This performance was called A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra and it was the perfect companion to the book we read in November for homeschool called The Orchestra. The performance first introduced all the different pieces of the orchestra by type of instrument (woodwind, brass, etc) and did so while playing songs of The Beatles. We heard Yellow Submarine, Magical Mystery Tour, Penny Lane, and more. Later on, each individual instrument was also highlighted from clarinet and piccolo to bassoon and trombone. Peppered in were also short pieces by contemporary composers and throughout was narration by local news anchor Maureen O'Boyle.

Outside the theater in the blustery air

My favorite part though was the featured violin soloist Caroline Campbell who performed half way through. She had flown in from L.A. to perform in Charlotte for the weekend and had even turned down a last minute request to perform with Paul McCartney at the Grammy's tonight to keep her engagement here. She came out like a goddess in a floor length gold lamee gown with flowing hair and bare feet. The way she swayed and danced and moved with her violin as if she and her instrument were one was truly breathtaking.



The was our first, but definitely not our our last trip to the symphony!

[I tried to get more pictures of M and I but in the Bank of America Center I got in trouble by the security guard who told me there were no photos allowed. Really?? Leave it to me to get in trouble at the symphony. Sheesh.]

This Little Light of Mine

This is a big year for M as she is initiated into two more sacraments of the church- Reconciliation and Communion. In late January she celebrated First Reconciliation. It was a different kind of ceremony than the one I celebrated as a 2nd grader. When I received the sacrament it was within the context of my small 2nd grade class back at Mount Carmel. Our class processed in together to join our families and sang prepared song. We also had these great paper pinafores we had made that said "I am Sorry" on the front and "I am Forgiven" on the back. After we went into the confessional- the old fashioned kind with kneelers and red velvet curtains- we came out and in front of the congregation turned our pinafore to the forgiven side with a big grin.

My First Reconciliation- February 1987

M's was a bit more tame. Our church is so big, that the ceremony ran more like the penance services that church's hold at Advent and Lent. About 6 area priests were there set up around the edges with two chairs and a candle. The children took turns going to the nearest priest and after they said their penance prayers the families were free to go.

After the ceremony M and I stopped off at Ben and Jerry's for nice big ice cream cones and I was pleased to see we weren't the only 7 year olds and grown ups there. I am sure the staff was wondering why the sudden rush for a rainy evening ice cream cone, but we Catholics all know that there is nothing like ice cream after a good confession:)

My beautiful daughter of God.

As Goggie, Oma and Opa's card to M said, "Shine on beautiful child of God. Shine on!"

Punxsutawney Daffodils

This past Tuesday was Groundhog Day, and as most of you know our dear old Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow and ran back frightened into his home to wait out 6 more weeks of winter. Well, here in Charlotte we had nothing to be scared of! The day was a glorious 70 degree masterpiece. The kids and I walked to school and were accompanied by robins gaily searching for worms, chikadees and wrens flitting about, and we even spotted a downy woodpecker foraging in the trees for some breakfast. The best surprise of the day, though was spotting these early February daffodils growing wild in the woods behind the condo. N and I braved the old rosebush thorns to bring this beauty of a boquet home to grace our kitchen.

If this is winter...we'll take it!

Christmas Card Outtakes

Thanks for the idea CrazyCampbells!!

You know everyone has them... the photos that just didn't make the cut. Here's some of my favorites.

First Day Back at School

As most of you know the kids and I embarked on a homeschooling journey this fall. I'm proud to say that through it I learned much about my children and got to share a closeness with them and develop a rapport that I have not had before. But, for as much as we liked it when it came down to it M just really likes going to school. She always has. As she told me, "I like learning at home, but I like learning with friends better."  Part of me thinks we didn't give it enough of a chance, but my gut feeling is that this is what is right for my whole family right now. And, lucky for me "teaching" my kids doesn't get to end. Little N still has a year and a half until Kindergarten, and I've got a bookshelf bulging with the best "living books" I could find. So cheers for bookophilia!!

Some New Definitions...Thanks to M & N

Scrapping (v)- A musical style on which most of the words are spoken in a fast, rhyming, melodic manner. Some of M's favorite scrapping occurs in songs such as D.J. Got Us Falling in Love and Tonight.

Dext (n)- The place where one sits to do homework, read lessons, and text on their iPod.

Bathtize (v)- The Initiation Rite in which a Christian has water poured over them and the "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit" is called down to make them a new person in God. See also "John the Bathtist."

Oopsie the Daisy (ph)- A colloquial phrase that means "uh-oh"; commonly known to get most adorable four year olds out of trouble.